John Paczkowski
@pczki.bsky.social
Executive Editor, Tech & Innovation, @forbes. Previously: BuzzFeed News, Recode, AllThingsD. Full salmon, forward into terror.
Reposted by John Paczkowski
New: Binance holds 87% of the Trump family's stablecoin—$4.7 billion—a higher concentration than any other major stablecoin has at any single exchange.
Its U.S. affiliate holds $1,119.
me, for @forbes.com
Its U.S. affiliate holds $1,119.
me, for @forbes.com
Trump's Stablecoin USD1: Binance Holds 87% After Founder's Pardon
World Liberty Financial's founding document describes the company as "pioneering a new era of Decentralized Finance." Its flagship stablecoin is anything but.
www.forbes.com
February 9, 2026 at 7:48 PM
New: Binance holds 87% of the Trump family's stablecoin—$4.7 billion—a higher concentration than any other major stablecoin has at any single exchange.
Its U.S. affiliate holds $1,119.
me, for @forbes.com
Its U.S. affiliate holds $1,119.
me, for @forbes.com
Reposted by John Paczkowski
can't help but think there is probably a corrosive effect of having sex trafficker-elite emails unveiled for months on end as one of the biggest cultural/news stories of the last year— unearthing an inexcusable moral rot in the upper echelons of power—but without any real accountability/justice
February 5, 2026 at 6:03 PM
can't help but think there is probably a corrosive effect of having sex trafficker-elite emails unveiled for months on end as one of the biggest cultural/news stories of the last year— unearthing an inexcusable moral rot in the upper echelons of power—but without any real accountability/justice
Reposted by John Paczkowski
ok, whoa. the DOJ just told me that the unredacted version of the document in question contains an image of a victim’s face overlayed on the face of the Mona Lisa image. so, that's why it's redacted. jesus christ
cool. glad we protected her identity at least www.404media.co/the-doj-reda...
The DOJ Redacted a Photo of the Mona Lisa in the Epstein Files
While Epstein’s victims endure the fallout of their photos and names being exposed in the Department of Justice’s latest tranche of files, investigators redacted the identity of the most famous portra...
www.404media.co
February 5, 2026 at 10:26 PM
ok, whoa. the DOJ just told me that the unredacted version of the document in question contains an image of a victim’s face overlayed on the face of the Mona Lisa image. so, that's why it's redacted. jesus christ
Reposted by John Paczkowski
GALLEGO: Let's say Trump wins that lawsuit. Where would that $10 billion come from?
BESSENT: It would come from Treasury
GALLEGO: So, taxpayers?
BESSENT: Yes. Part of the 44,000 whose returns were leaked
GALLEGO: They're not suing
BESSENT: It would come from Treasury
GALLEGO: So, taxpayers?
BESSENT: Yes. Part of the 44,000 whose returns were leaked
GALLEGO: They're not suing
February 5, 2026 at 4:53 PM
GALLEGO: Let's say Trump wins that lawsuit. Where would that $10 billion come from?
BESSENT: It would come from Treasury
GALLEGO: So, taxpayers?
BESSENT: Yes. Part of the 44,000 whose returns were leaked
GALLEGO: They're not suing
BESSENT: It would come from Treasury
GALLEGO: So, taxpayers?
BESSENT: Yes. Part of the 44,000 whose returns were leaked
GALLEGO: They're not suing
Reposted by John Paczkowski
Wrote about some of the history of the Wyden Siren from @wyden.senate.gov and why we should take it VERY seriously when he sends a cryptic letter like he did yesterday.
The Wyden Siren: Senator’s Cryptic CIA Letter Follows A Pattern That’s Never Been Wrong
If you've been paying attention to surveillance and civil liberties issues over the past fifteen years, you've likely learned to recognize a particular pattern. Senator Ron Wyden will occasionally send a public…
If you've been paying attention to surveillance and civil liberties issues over the past fifteen years, you've likely learned to recognize a particular pattern. Senator Ron Wyden will occasionally send a public…
The Wyden Siren: Senator’s Cryptic CIA Letter Follows A Pattern That’s Never Been Wrong
If you've been paying attention to surveillance and civil liberties issues over the past fifteen years, you've likely learned to recognize a particular pattern. Senator Ron Wyden will occasionally send a public letter that essentially says "hey, I can't tell you what's happening because it's classified, but something really bad is going on and you should all be paying attention."
www.techdirt.com
February 5, 2026 at 6:25 PM
Wrote about some of the history of the Wyden Siren from @wyden.senate.gov and why we should take it VERY seriously when he sends a cryptic letter like he did yesterday.
Reposted by John Paczkowski
(Bloomberg) - Elon Musk can be forced to testify in a lawsuit brought by government workers and contractors who accused him of unlawfully directing the dissolution of the [USAID] while he was a senior White House adviser, a judge ruled.
www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
February 5, 2026 at 7:23 PM
(Bloomberg) - Elon Musk can be forced to testify in a lawsuit brought by government workers and contractors who accused him of unlawfully directing the dissolution of the [USAID] while he was a senior White House adviser, a judge ruled.
www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
Reposted by John Paczkowski
#$TRUMP recently launched a game to increase the coin’s utility, potentially boosting demand for the token.
Doesn’t seem to have helped.
Doesn’t seem to have helped.
New ‘Trump Billionaires Club’ Mobile Game Features President’s Struggling Meme Coin
The "play-to-earn" title offers a $1 million prize pool denominated in $TRUMP and uses it for in-game activity, an apparent effort to revive the president's official meme coin, which is down 93% from ...
www.forbes.com
February 5, 2026 at 7:34 PM
#$TRUMP recently launched a game to increase the coin’s utility, potentially boosting demand for the token.
Doesn’t seem to have helped.
Doesn’t seem to have helped.
Reposted by John Paczkowski
While reporting this, I had something happen that's never happened. A comms rep for one of the co's disputed my reporting and said what I was telling them was untrue because it was not in Grok, xAI's chatbot.
I was looking directly at the files. And this person was using AI to challenge the truth.
I was looking directly at the files. And this person was using AI to challenge the truth.
Epstein had many known connections to Silicon Valley CEOs, but less known was how he made money from those relationships.
We did a deep dive into how he got dealflow in Silicon Valley, giving him shots to invest in Coinbase, Palantir, SpaceX and other companies.
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/05/b...
We did a deep dive into how he got dealflow in Silicon Valley, giving him shots to invest in Coinbase, Palantir, SpaceX and other companies.
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/05/b...
Jeffrey Epstein’s Money Mingled With Silicon Valley Start-Ups
www.nytimes.com
February 5, 2026 at 5:38 PM
While reporting this, I had something happen that's never happened. A comms rep for one of the co's disputed my reporting and said what I was telling them was untrue because it was not in Grok, xAI's chatbot.
I was looking directly at the files. And this person was using AI to challenge the truth.
I was looking directly at the files. And this person was using AI to challenge the truth.
Reposted by John Paczkowski
When a PR fixer turned VC introduced a startup founder to Jeffrey Epstein... what a lede from @iainmartin.bsky.social 🫠
www.forbes.com/sites/iainma...
www.forbes.com/sites/iainma...
February 4, 2026 at 9:13 PM
When a PR fixer turned VC introduced a startup founder to Jeffrey Epstein... what a lede from @iainmartin.bsky.social 🫠
www.forbes.com/sites/iainma...
www.forbes.com/sites/iainma...
Thiel, the king of contrarian investors, told Epstein to pass on Spotify, and also advised against investing in Palantir, the defense-tech firm he co-founded, saying the price was "below market."
Jeffrey #Epstein had access to tech billionaires like Thiel and Musk. But he walked away from deals with major startups—including Spotify & SpaceX—that could have netted him hundreds of millions in total.
Deep dive from @iainmartin.bsky.social + me for @forbes.com:
www.forbes.com/sites/iainma...
Deep dive from @iainmartin.bsky.social + me for @forbes.com:
www.forbes.com/sites/iainma...
Inside Jeffrey Epstein’s Secretive Silicon Valley Investments
Thanks to his relationships to tech billionaires like Peter Thiel and Elon Musk, Epstein had access to a number of lucrative tech investments. But he walked away from several deals with major startups...
www.forbes.com
February 5, 2026 at 4:56 PM
Thiel, the king of contrarian investors, told Epstein to pass on Spotify, and also advised against investing in Palantir, the defense-tech firm he co-founded, saying the price was "below market."
Reposted by John Paczkowski
My story on Elon Musk cutting safeguards at xAI is on the front page of today's @washingtonpost.com. I’m also among 100’s of reporters laid off. I absolutely loved my job my brilliant coworkers & the thrill of reporting @ the center of forces upending the world: AI & Silicon Valley’s political power
February 4, 2026 at 7:40 PM
My story on Elon Musk cutting safeguards at xAI is on the front page of today's @washingtonpost.com. I’m also among 100’s of reporters laid off. I absolutely loved my job my brilliant coworkers & the thrill of reporting @ the center of forces upending the world: AI & Silicon Valley’s political power
On Elon: “It's crazy to me how much time he spends attacking us. And, you know, ‘Do you care enough about safety?’ and this and that, while their own house is on fire on these things consistently."
Sam Altman On Elon Musk, Donald Trump, Robotics, Fatherhood And More
Across two wide-ranging interviews with Forbes, Altman covered more ground than could fit in our profile. Here are his remarks on everything from vaccine research to critics who argue he backs compani...
www.forbes.com
February 4, 2026 at 4:03 PM
On Elon: “It's crazy to me how much time he spends attacking us. And, you know, ‘Do you care enough about safety?’ and this and that, while their own house is on fire on these things consistently."
"Sam Altman says the stick of uranium in his office is nothing to worry about. Sitting vertically on his desk like a squat ebony Slim Jim, it is perhaps the most eyebrow-raising among the impressive array of historic innovations he has collected over the years."
NEW: We profiled Sam Altman for the cover of Forbes Magazine. For the story, we talked to Bob Iger, Masa Son, Satya Nadella, Brian Chesky, Paul Graham and more. Graham’s take was resonant: “He’s good at getting people to do what he wants.” w/ Anna Tong
www.forbes.com/sites/richar...
www.forbes.com/sites/richar...
February 3, 2026 at 5:09 PM
"Sam Altman says the stick of uranium in his office is nothing to worry about. Sitting vertically on his desk like a squat ebony Slim Jim, it is perhaps the most eyebrow-raising among the impressive array of historic innovations he has collected over the years."
Here's our big Sam Altman profile, featuring interviews with Sam, Bob Iger, Masa Son, Jony Ive, Paul Graham and Brian Chesky. Also appearing: a uranium rod, a piece of a Concorde jet engine, a Stone Age hand axe and more … www.forbes.com/sites/richar...
Sam Altman Explains The Future, OpenAI's New Device And His Musk Feud
Sam Altman founded his first tech company as a teenager and was running Y combinator, the world’s leading startup accelerator, by 28. As CEO of OpenAI, the 40-year-old billionaire unleashed ChatGPT, c...
www.forbes.com
February 3, 2026 at 4:45 PM
Here's our big Sam Altman profile, featuring interviews with Sam, Bob Iger, Masa Son, Jony Ive, Paul Graham and Brian Chesky. Also appearing: a uranium rod, a piece of a Concorde jet engine, a Stone Age hand axe and more … www.forbes.com/sites/richar...
Reposted by John Paczkowski
While authors litigate, publishers are leaning in.
Publishers like Penguin Random House, Macmillan, and Wiley are actively, and perhaps quietly, recruiting AI engineers. Despite writer pushback, the industry is looking to leverage AI for back-office efficiency.
www.forbes.com/sites/rashis...
Publishers like Penguin Random House, Macmillan, and Wiley are actively, and perhaps quietly, recruiting AI engineers. Despite writer pushback, the industry is looking to leverage AI for back-office efficiency.
www.forbes.com/sites/rashis...
Why Penguin Random House And Macmillan Are Recruiting AI Engineers
Publishing giants like Penguin Random House and Macmillan are eager to use AI internally—but not for writing or editing. Their authors still might revolt.
www.forbes.com
February 3, 2026 at 2:41 PM
While authors litigate, publishers are leaning in.
Publishers like Penguin Random House, Macmillan, and Wiley are actively, and perhaps quietly, recruiting AI engineers. Despite writer pushback, the industry is looking to leverage AI for back-office efficiency.
www.forbes.com/sites/rashis...
Publishers like Penguin Random House, Macmillan, and Wiley are actively, and perhaps quietly, recruiting AI engineers. Despite writer pushback, the industry is looking to leverage AI for back-office efficiency.
www.forbes.com/sites/rashis...
Reposted by John Paczkowski
Among the batch of newly released emails from Jeffrey Epstein: Epstein telling Peter Thiel he would “gladly share…expenses for the Gawker suit.”
This was sent the day after @rmac.bsky.social and @mattdrange.bsky.social reported in Forbes that Thiel was behind the lawsuit that would bankrupt Gawker
This was sent the day after @rmac.bsky.social and @mattdrange.bsky.social reported in Forbes that Thiel was behind the lawsuit that would bankrupt Gawker
January 31, 2026 at 8:25 PM
Among the batch of newly released emails from Jeffrey Epstein: Epstein telling Peter Thiel he would “gladly share…expenses for the Gawker suit.”
This was sent the day after @rmac.bsky.social and @mattdrange.bsky.social reported in Forbes that Thiel was behind the lawsuit that would bankrupt Gawker
This was sent the day after @rmac.bsky.social and @mattdrange.bsky.social reported in Forbes that Thiel was behind the lawsuit that would bankrupt Gawker
Reposted by John Paczkowski
New from 404 Media: here is the user guide for ELITE, the tool Palantir made for ICE. A map shows people on a map; ICE clicks them, brings up their dossier. ICE uses to find which neighborhoods to target. We obtained it, you can now read the document for yourself: www.404media.co/here-is-the-...
Here is the User Guide for ELITE, the Tool Palantir Made for ICE
404 Media is publishing a version of the user guide for ELITE, which lets ICE bring up dossiers on individual people and provides a “confidence score” of their address.
www.404media.co
January 30, 2026 at 2:51 PM
New from 404 Media: here is the user guide for ELITE, the tool Palantir made for ICE. A map shows people on a map; ICE clicks them, brings up their dossier. ICE uses to find which neighborhoods to target. We obtained it, you can now read the document for yourself: www.404media.co/here-is-the-...
Reposted by John Paczkowski
A Minnesota woman observing ICE agents in her car was cornered on one-way streets. An agent approached, called her by name—citing facial recognition. Days later, her Global Entry and TSA privileges were revoked, with no explanation.
How ICE Already Knows Who Minneapolis Protesters Are
www.nytimes.com
January 30, 2026 at 11:55 AM
A Minnesota woman observing ICE agents in her car was cornered on one-way streets. An agent approached, called her by name—citing facial recognition. Days later, her Global Entry and TSA privileges were revoked, with no explanation.
Reposted by John Paczkowski
What happens when an ambitious AI startup creates a fake company to help it take on a PE-backed software giant?
You guessed it: Litigation.
Here's how a Silicon Valley success story has devolved into a cautionary tale.
Read about it @forbes.com 👇
www.forbes.com/sites/johnhy...
You guessed it: Litigation.
Here's how a Silicon Valley success story has devolved into a cautionary tale.
Read about it @forbes.com 👇
www.forbes.com/sites/johnhy...
This Insurance Software Goliath Is Crushing An AI David
How the AI race drove one software startup to create a fake insurance agency—and landed it in court.
www.forbes.com
January 30, 2026 at 3:09 PM
What happens when an ambitious AI startup creates a fake company to help it take on a PE-backed software giant?
You guessed it: Litigation.
Here's how a Silicon Valley success story has devolved into a cautionary tale.
Read about it @forbes.com 👇
www.forbes.com/sites/johnhy...
You guessed it: Litigation.
Here's how a Silicon Valley success story has devolved into a cautionary tale.
Read about it @forbes.com 👇
www.forbes.com/sites/johnhy...
New: OpenAI is developing a "real-humans-only" social network to take on the bot problem, sources say. The play? OpenAI considered gating access with biometric verification like World’s eyeball scanning "Orb", or Apple's Face ID. www.forbes.com/sites/annato...
OpenAI Wants To Use Biometrics To Kill Bots And Create Humans Only Social Network
OpenAI is quietly building a social network and considering using biometric verification like World’s eyeball scanning orb or Apple’s Face ID to ensure its users are people, not bots.
www.forbes.com
January 28, 2026 at 11:08 PM
New: OpenAI is developing a "real-humans-only" social network to take on the bot problem, sources say. The play? OpenAI considered gating access with biometric verification like World’s eyeball scanning "Orb", or Apple's Face ID. www.forbes.com/sites/annato...
Reposted by John Paczkowski
Reposted by John Paczkowski
VAN HOLLEN: Simple yes or no -- were you with President Trump during any of those conversations he had with people who had oil interests in Venezuela about the possibility of deposing Maduro?
RUBIO: That's not a simple yes or no question
(That's a yes)
RUBIO: That's not a simple yes or no question
(That's a yes)
January 28, 2026 at 5:32 PM
VAN HOLLEN: Simple yes or no -- were you with President Trump during any of those conversations he had with people who had oil interests in Venezuela about the possibility of deposing Maduro?
RUBIO: That's not a simple yes or no question
(That's a yes)
RUBIO: That's not a simple yes or no question
(That's a yes)
Reposted by John Paczkowski
New: "House Health Panel Member Kevin Hern Sold UnitedHealth Amid Stock-Trading Ban Push"
me, for @forbes.com
me, for @forbes.com
Rep. Kevin Hern Sold UnitedHealth Stock While Sitting On House Health Subcommittee
Disclosures show the Oklahoma Republican sold up to $500,000 in UnitedHealth stock while serving on a committee that oversees payments for health care.
www.forbes.com
January 27, 2026 at 10:40 PM
New: "House Health Panel Member Kevin Hern Sold UnitedHealth Amid Stock-Trading Ban Push"
me, for @forbes.com
me, for @forbes.com
Reposted by John Paczkowski
A memo sent earlier this month to agents temporarily assigned to the city said “capture all images, license plates, identifications, and general information on hotels, agitators, protestors, etc., so we can capture it all in one consolidated form,” according to correspondence reviewed by CNN.
January 27, 2026 at 8:28 PM
A memo sent earlier this month to agents temporarily assigned to the city said “capture all images, license plates, identifications, and general information on hotels, agitators, protestors, etc., so we can capture it all in one consolidated form,” according to correspondence reviewed by CNN.